Think Twice
by BansheeGirl
Summary: After another major fight, James makes a decision that will have drastic effects on the Rocket trio's friendship forever. Can Jessie change his mind before it is too late? Rocketshippy.
1. Chapter One

**Think Twice**

**By BansheeGirl**

**Disclaimer:** Want me to let you in on a secret? I don't own Pokémon!

**A/N:** Hey y'all! Just a bit of an angsty littlefic I've got for all of you Rocketshippers out there! This one's for you! Enjoy, and don't forget to review once you're done! Thanks!

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**Chapter One**

**_Don't think that I can't feel that there's something wrong _**

_**You've been the sweetest part of my life for so long **_

Jessie watched James as he forcefully shoved the basket of the Meowth hot-air balloon onto a large cargo trolley. His expression remained stern as he gathered the canvas that comprised the Meowth's head – a symbol which had become a trademark of the Team Rocket trio's usual mode of transport. A gaping whole in the side of the balloon indicated that the day's attempts in catching any Pokémon had not resulted well. This also had become a trademark for the teenage boy and girl and talking Meowth.

James dumped the expanse of canvas into the green-thatched basket, and walked around to take hold of the trolley's metal handle. He pushed forward to send the trolley and its new load into movement, yet only to add to James' apparent aggravation it would not budge. In utter irritation he slammed his body forward with full force to try and move the stubborn trolley, alas to no avail. Jessie stepped in beside the trolley and kicked one of the front wheels which had become jammed in a sideward position to face forwards. She signalled to James to try again, and her partner pushed on with ease. He did not seem impressed with her swift solution of the problem.

Jessie looked down at Meowth and the pair exchanged a puzzled expression. They followed after James into Team Rocket Headquarters' vehicle and cargo bay, where the three wove in and out of various people, parked cars and trucks, forklifts and storage containers. What essentially was simply an extremely large shed stretched on until Jessie, James and Meowth arrived in a far corner. Jessie watched as James conversed with a man in a smart grey Team Rocket uniform. Her partner spoke shortly, not caring for any gentleness with the other man. A frown creased his brow, and when the man signalled for James to park the trolley in a bay to their left, her lavender-haired friend pushed on with the same aggression as before. He slid the trolley into place and it crashed against the tin wall with a jolt.

Jessie had known James since she had become a registered Team Rocket field-agent at the age of sixteen. Aside from forming a very close and cherished friendship with him, she had learnt to interpret James' expressions, tone of voice and body language. Right now she could see that he was very angry, and she could feel her heart beating fast with anxiety. James did not get angry very often, but when he did…

Something was wrong. She and James had had a fight earlier that day, when once again their plan had failed and the twerps had blasted them off again. Yet it was unusual for hostility to continue between the pair for so long. Normally something such as this would blow over in an hour or two, and Jessie and James would return to their relatively friendly selves. However, James had remained in this unwelcoming mood for the majority of the day.

Yes, something was wrong.

_**I look in your eyes, there's a distant light **_

_**And you and I know there'll be a storm tonight **_

"James, what is wrong with you?" She asked bluntly, searching to hold his eyes with her own. When James finally met them, Jessie struggled to maintain an emotionless expression. There was a hardness in his eyes that ignited a sense of alarm somewhere deep inside of her – Jessie instantly knew that she was not going to like what lay ahead. She managed to secure her indifferent expression, not daring to let James see that he had her in a state of fear.

"What is wrong with _me_?" James retorted, "Of course it's always something wrong with _me_ isn't it, Jessie? Never _you_. No, not perfect Jessie." His eyes remained cold, boring into Jessie with malice.

Jessie's mouth dropped open in disbelief at this sudden attack on her. "Excuse me? Sorry if I was just making an enquiry into your general wellbeing!"

James rolled his eyes. "Puh-lease. You didn't seem so concerned about my 'general wellbeing' this morning when you were so viciously blaming me for today's failure. And every other failure we've had, for that matter."

Meowth peered up at the feuding pair with wide eyes, making a wise decision not to interfere in the argument. In the far corner of the large vehicle and cargo shed, Jessie and James carried on relatively unnoticed and otherwise ignored.

"Well you weren't exactly playing Mr. Nice Guy in this morning's little disagreement, were you James?" Jessie spat, letting her previous concern for James become overwhelmed by her own anger. "I seem to recall you making some quite uncalled-for accusations!"

James laughed incredulously. "What, so it's okay for you to blame me for everything, but I can't do the same thing?"

Jessie scowled, "I never said that James! You're twisting this around like it's some big deal when it's not!"

"Isn't it?" James replied quickly, the incredulity leaving his voice. "This is how it is all the time. It seems like we are _always_ fighting, and to tell the truth I'm sick and tired of it."

Jessie's face fell from an angered expression to one of misunderstanding.

James ran a hand through his shoulder-length hair, sighing. He glanced at his female partner with a look of remorse. "Jessie, you and I both know that this hasn't been working out for some time. I think it's best if we… reconsider our situation."

Jessie took a shocked step back from James. Suddenly things had become too severe for comfort.

_**This is getting serious **_

_**Are you thinking 'bout you or us? **_

"What exactly are you trying to say?" Jessie said, struggling to maintain a strong tone of voice. Somewhere inside of her, she had the feeling she knew exactly what he was about to say. And it scared the living daylight out of her.

James did not directly answer the question, correctly assuming that Jessie had already cottoned onto where the conversation was leading. "Jessie, we would both be a lot better off, you have to admit. One of the reasons we end up failing all the time is because all we ever seem to do is fight."

"James, we are _not_ always fighting!" Jessie screeched, trying desperately to think of excuses to stop James from making his point. How could he be thinking this? She looked down to Meowth for support, but the catlike Pokémon seemed to be in a confused stupor. For once their feline friend appeared to be speechless.

James gave Jessie a harsh look. "We're doing it right now! We can't even discuss a serious matter without getting into an argument!"

"We're only fighting now because you are acting like a complete moron, James!" Jessie scowled, allowing her anger to cover up her inner emotions – a defence mechanism that she had learned to use when just a child.

James' eyes widened with furious incredulity. "This partnership is _not_ working. You can't just ignore it, Jessie. One of these days one of us is going to say something that is going to totally destroy any sort of friendship we have left."

Jessie shot a glare at her partner, a barely noticeable glassiness in her eyes indicating the possibility of tears on behalf of the teenage girl.

"You're doing that right now, James."


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

_**Don't say what you're about to say**_

_**Look back before you leave my life**_

_**Be sure before you close that door**_

_**Before you roll those dice**_

_**Baby think twice**_

James' eyes narrowed. "…Don't you dare blame this on me."

"What, so it's my entire fault, is it?" Jessie hissed, "It seems to me like you're the one doing all the blaming, _James_." She spoke his name with venom.

James let out an angry sigh, and she could see him mentally forcing himself not to retaliate. His mood seemed to eventually calm. "I've already talked to The Boss about it. He's taken everything into consideration and agreed with the idea."

Jessie felt her insides twist. "What? When did you talk to him?"

"… I called him on the telephone at the Pokémon Centre this morning. He's already taken action to reassign us. Jessie…" James paused, before reluctantly going on, "the moment we walked into headquarters, we stopped being partners. Everything's already been changed."

The weight of what James was saying was almost too much to bear for Jessie. She stood in front of him, wordless.

James continued, "The Boss already had a free assignment for me to take part in. I leave tomorrow morning with a new team." He looked to both Meowth and Jessie, signalling that he was now addressing both of them, "He said that he'll be meeting with you both sometime this week to arrange new teams for each of you."

"Ya gotta be kiddin'!" Meowth reeled. He was somewhat ignored as James again focussed on Jessie.

With Meowth's remark Jessie finally found her voice. "James, how could you speak to the boss without asking us about this first! How could you just go behind our backs and split us all up like that?" Her tone was indignant.

"Because it's the only way!" James retorted.

"No it's not!" Jessie yelled, surprising even herself with the realisation of how loud the volume of her voice had become. She lowered it slightly. "Don't I…" she faltered, before continuing, "doesn't this team mean _anything_ to you?" The fiery-haired girl could feel tears stinging her eyes, and fought to hold them back. This was the least opportune moment to start bawling her eyes out.

James maintained a stern expression. "… I honestly just don't know anymore. But this is what is best… for all of us."

"How do you know what is best for us, James? Are you really thinking about all of us, or just yourself?" Jessie heard her voice waver, and knew that she had to get out of there before she burst into tears in front of everyone.

"Jessie, I-"

His partner cut in before James could barely begin his sentence, "-Just shut it, James. I don't want to hear anything more from you. Good riddance," she scowled, spinning on her heel and swiftly walking away. She had disappeared through a large pair of steel doors into the main HQ building before tears began streaming down her face.

_**Baby think twice for the sake of our love, for the memory**_

_**For the fire and the faith that was you and me**_

Jessie sat on her bed, her legs bent up so that her forehead rested between her knees. She hooked her arms around her legs to hug them tighter to her. The scarlet-haired girl had locked herself in her small dormitory, not even emerging when Meowth had knocked at the door wanting to talk.

She sniffled, managing to stop herself from crying at least for a little while. How could James do this? How could James do this to _her_? Jessie felt her heart wrench when she thought of not seeing her emerald-eyed friend every day. It was unthinkable.

Jessie thought back to all the times she and James had spent together. There were so many memories that they shared, even if some of them weren't so pleasant. How could James just throw all of that away? She winced at the thought of simply becoming a small part in James' history. Wasn't she so much more than that to him?

Jessie felt tears welling in her eyes, her attempt to stop crying seemingly resulting in failure. It hurt to think that she was obviously worth so much less to him than he was to her. Jessie could not deny it: she was in love with James, and had been for a very long time. She doubted that he felt the same way, but had always held a glimmer of hope that someday he could love her in return. Evidently, that was now never going to happen. On the contrary, James' voluntary separation from the Rocket trio outlined his clear desire _not_ to ever be with Jessie.

And yet there had been so many times when Jessie had sensed that James in fact _did_ feel the same way about her as she did about him. Her mind drifted back to the countless times that they had inadvertently become lost in each other's eyes – a situation always followed by an awkward moment of embarrassment. And then there were the nights when they both sat by the campfire, talking endlessly until with astonishment each realised that the sun was already rising. Whenever Jessie was with James – even if they _were_ fighting, she simply felt a state of belonging. She had never felt like that with anyone else before. How could such a strong feeling be wrong? Jessie felt her spirits wilt.

Crying freely, Jessie laughed melancholically at the thought of James or Meowth seeing her like this. She hardly ever cried, and certainly never cried in front of either of her friends. The laugh, however, dwindled, and quickly transformed into a sob.

_**Babe I know it ain't easy when your soul cries out for higher ground**_

'_**Cos when you're halfway up, you're always halfway down**_

Jessie thought about the things that James had said to her earlier, about them always fighting. She knew that they indeed fought a lot. The sapphire-eyed teenager felt a pang of guilt when she realised that she was probably the one responsible for the majority of their arguments. It undoubtedly was a major fault of hers – but Jessie automatically became angry whenever she felt vulnerable or insecure. She had tried to break out of the habit before, but always ended up reverting back to her old ways.

Anyway, there could never be a friendship or relationship without rough times, could there? Jessie pondered the thought. She knew that James sometimes struggled to cope with her enraged outbursts, but otherwise he was fairly tolerant and they managed to pull through most arguments in one piece. It had scared Jessie to no end when James had been so clearly cross with her earlier that day. It was unusual for him to remain in an angered state for so long, which had alerted her to the seriousness of their fight.

And for all the fights and rough times that she and James had been through, hadn't there also been an equal – if not greater number of good times that they had experienced together? Was James willing to just give all that up simply because of a few disputes that they'd had? As the thousands of unanswered questions hurtled through her mind, Jessie felt her head become light with confusion. She lay herself down on the bed, resting her head on the soft pillow.

"Doesn't he feel the same?" She whispered faintly, the words choked with tears. She listened to the empty silence of her room, as if someone would miraculously appear and answer her question. When nothing happened, Jessie squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block out the pain. Yet no matter how hard she tried, more thoughts kept nudging away at her mind.

If only she had been nicer to him… If only she had shown she cared… If only she had shown her true emotions instead of masking them all with anger…

If only…

Jessie sobbed into her pillow, until she finally cried herself to sleep.


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

_**But baby this is serious**_

_**Are you thinking 'bout you or us?**_

After slipping her Team Rocket uniform on, Jessie slowly moved to the small mirror hanging on the inside of her wardrobe door and began to brush her long, scarlet locks. It was morning, and Jessie had endured a long night of fitful sleep. Her dreams had been filled with images of James, with memories of her times with him, and an imagined future where the two of them were no longer together. In some dreams she had been angry at James, while in others she could only stand and cry at the thought of him leaving. In some she hated him and in some she loved him so much that Jessie knew she would have travelled to all ends of the earth just to have him.

Jessie stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her restless sleep was evident in the darkness around her eyes. She guessed that her evident tiredness was also a result of the emotional trauma she felt she'd been through since the previous day, and wondered if she'd ever recover. It was said that time healed all wounds, but Jessie could not see how the passing of time would ever be able to fill the hole she now felt in her heart.

Jessie looked at the alarm clock that rested on the small table beside her bed. It was five minutes past seven. She wondered whether James had left yet. It was usual for departing teams to leave reasonably early in the morning, and she realised with a sigh that James was probably already on the road with his new team, heading towards a new life. A life without her in it.

He had not even come to say goodbye.

Tears threatened to escape from Jessie's eyes, and she did nothing to restrain them. How could he forget about her so easily? How could he just leave, without even acknowledging a friendship that had existed for three whole years?

An obviously tired and emotionally distraught image stared back at Jessie from the mirror. Jessie realised with disgust what a pitiful person she looked to be. Here she was, crying about her woes all alone in her tiny Team Rocket bedroom, asking herself questions that clearly weren't going to be answered on their own. This was not a person that Jessie wanted to be.

She looked to her alarm clock again. Fourteen minutes past seven. If even there was the slimmest chance that James hadn't left yet…

Tossing her hairbrush on the bed, Jessie jerked open the door leading outside into the hallway. She could not let James leave without letting him know about her feelings towards him. If their friendship was over, she could not live with the ever-present question of 'what if he really _did_ love me in return?' She had to tell him. This was going to be her only chance.

_**Don't say what you're about to say**_

_**Look back before you leave my life**_

_**Be sure before you close that door**_

_**Before you roll those dice**_

_**Baby think twice**_

Jessie ran through the corridors of Team Rocket Headquarters, heading for the nearest exit. If James was going to be anywhere, he would be at the vehicle and cargo bay. Tears began to blind her vision with both the stupidity she felt for not telling James her feelings sooner, and the more-than-probable chance that she would get to the vehicle and cargo bay only to find him already gone.

Bursting outside, Jessie ran along the side of the HQ building and continued on to where the vehicle and cargo bay came into view. She distinguished some Team Rocket members standing by a small truck outside loading things onto the back tray. With a leap of her heart, she recognised one of the men as her lavender-headed friend.

"James!"

James finished loading a black metal box onto the truck and turned around in puzzlement. His eyes searched for the person who belonged to the voice that had called out his name. He only just identified Jessie as she emerged in front of him. Unexpectedly she leapt straight into James, wrapping her arms around his neck in a tight hug which knocked him back a few feet.

James took a moment to adjust to this sudden situation. Jessie had not had time to style her hair in its usual curve that morning, and it flowed freely down her back. His ex-partner also sobbed unreservedly into his shoulder – these were both things that James rarely ever saw of Jessie. After overcoming the initial shock of this event, James confusedly placed his arms around Jessie's waist to hug her back.

"J-James, please don't go," Jessie sobbed into his new black uniform.

James frowned, overwhelmed with confusion. As his friend continued to cry, he attempted to calm her. "Jessie, please calm down for a second. It's okay. Come on," he soothed, waving away one of his new team members who was approaching to see what was the matter. The man seemed to understand and retreated back to the truck to wait.

"Jessie, what's going on?" James asked, removing his hands from her waist. He moved them up to her arms so he could pull Jessie away from his shoulder.

Jessie's eyes flickered intermittently from James' chest, where her arms now rested, and James' eyes. "I don't want you to go," she croaked, somehow managing to hold back her tears.

"Jessie…" James started, Jessie noticed in a not very reassuring tone. She knew that he was going to begin telling her that this was best. For both of them.

"James, I…" she began, interjecting before he could say any more. "I'm sorry that I fight with you all the time, but you see, it's only because… well…" her voice lowered to barely a whisper, "I'm in love with you."

James' eyes widened, stunned by Jessie's words.

_**Baby this is serious**_

_**Are you thinking 'bout you or us?**_

Jessie looked up into James' astonished eyes. She watched as he blinked, as if trying to compose himself. Her heart sank as his expression transformed to once again show a reproachful manner.

"Jessie… I have to go," he murmured softly.

Jessie nodded, and remained silent as she felt the familiar sensation of an oncoming series of tears. Slowly she backed away from James, fixated her eyes on the ground at her feet.

James hesitated for a moment. He looked over to the truck where his new partners were waiting for him, and then back to the girl standing before him.

"… Goodbye… Jessie," he said. He waited for Jessie to respond, but she continued to stare at the ground, her long scarlet hair falling over her face to hide her features.

Receiving no reply, James turned and retreated to the awaiting truck.

Jessie did not lift her head until she could no longer hear his footsteps on the gravel. She peered up to see him jumping into the tray of the truck with another Team Rocket agent. Before James could look back to see her watching after him, Jessie had already turned away and begun walking to return to HQ. She herself did not look back, even when she heard the truck lurch into ignition and trundle away down the gravel road.

Jessie walked slowly. The tears were not falling as freely as they should have been, considering that she had just been shot down by the only man that she had ever loved, and probably would ever truly love. She did not know whether it was shock or merely confusion, but Jessie felt to be in a state of emptiness. Without warning, she suddenly kicked hard down at the ground, sending a large rock speeding in front of her before it veered off to the left into some bushes. She screamed at the top of her lungs, and buried her face in her hands to finally begin an inevitable bout of weeping.


	4. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

_**Don't say what you're about to say**_

_**Look back before you leave my life**_

_**Be sure before you close that door**_

_**Before you roll those dice**_

James stared off the back of the truck, bracing himself every time a bump was encountered on the rough gravel road. With only room for three people in the cabin, yet with five people in James' new team, he and another guy whom had been introduced simply as 'Seb' had to sit on the back tray. He thought about the days ahead, and the new mission he had been sent on by The Boss with these new people as Team Rocket HQ dwindled into the distance.

Yet he could not drag his mind from Jessie. He had been so shocked when she had turned up, James found himself wondering if perhaps his utter astonishment had clouded his judgement when deciding not to stay with the woman who had just confessed her love to him. After all, hadn't he been waiting for that very moment ever since knowing Jessie? He had banished all hopes of ever being in a relationship with his sapphire-eyed ex-partner since calling The Boss the previous morning to settle this new arrangement. James had never expected her to suddenly admit her feelings for him in the very moments before he was about to leave.

James was confused. And, he was angry that he was confused. This arrangement was supposed to settle everything; make things less stressful! He turned to the Team Rocket agent sitting beside him.

"Do you think I made the wrong decision?" James asked, simply.

Seb did not look at James, but stared straight head. He brought his hand up to stroke his black goatee, before finally directing his gaze to the other male. "Mate," he started, "I honestly don't know what you're still doing sitting in the back of this truck."

James stared at Seb, digesting the other agent's words. His eyes widened, and without warning the lavender-haired teenager leapt off the back of the truck, stumbled slightly upon hitting the ground, and ran as hard as his legs would take him back in the direction of the headquarters.

Seb laughed incredulously.

_**Don't do what you're about to do**_

_**My everything depends on you**_

_**And whatever it takes, I'll sacrifice**_

_**Before you roll those dice**_

_**Baby think twice**_

Mere minutes later, James neared HQ and frantically darted his eyes about to locate Jessie. Unable to see her, he entered the building and sped through the many hallways and corridors to come to the living quarters of HQ in hope that she had gone back to her dormitory. He had to ascend three flights of stairs to arrive at Jessie's floor. Swiftly walking along the hallway, he stopped at a door labelled 'AGENT 767: JESSICA AVALON'. He knocked at the door firmly.

There was no answer.

James knocked again, but there was still no reply. He opened his mouth to ask if she was in there, but turned suddenly to see a figure standing beside him. It was Jessie.

Her eyes were wide with bewilderment. James noticed that they were very red, and realised that she had been crying a lot more since he had left her only a very short while ago. "What are you doing here?" She asked, her voice quiet with disbelief.

James took up Jessie's hands. "Jess, I'm sorry. Please, you have to understand… I... I really am in love with you too. It's just… I hate fighting with you, and I hate the way we hurt each other when we fight. Two people who love each other shouldn't hurt each other so much…" His eyes looked sadly into hers.

Jessie nodded, a few tears sliding down the sides of her face. "I know," she whispered, "I don't want to hurt you anymore..."

James lifted his hand and wiped a tear from Jessie' cheek. She could see that he too had tears welling in his own eyes.

James leant down and brought his lips to Jessie's, and she lifted her arms to wrap them around his neck. James returned the embrace, and the pair, amidst tears, finally expressed their affection for each other in a passionate kiss.

Unbeknown to the reunited partners, a small catlike Pokémon rounded a corner into the hallway to suddenly be faced with his two friends in the intimate embrace. Originally visiting this section of the living quarters to check on a previously unreceptive Jessie, Meowth was more than shocked to see her having already apparently solved her problem. He grinned, silently exiting the scene. It looked like everything was going to be alright.

**FIN.**

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Hope everyone liked this fic! If anyone wanted to know, the song used is called _Think Twice_ (I was original with the fic title, huh?) by Celine Dion, from the Album _The Colour Of My Love_. Um… I'm not a huge fan of Celine Dion, if that's what you're thinking! It's my mum's CD! Honest! Anyway, I actually do happen to like a couple of her songs… I'll admit that! And I just thought that this particular one would suit a rocketshippy fanfic. So, yeah… this is the offspring of that thought! 

Well, I'd really love it if you'd review this fic. Comments, criticism… whatever, I can take it!

May the Rocketshippiness by with you!

Till Next Time,

BansheeGirl.


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